Picard Huron Canoe

 Native built canoes from Quebec were, and continue to be made, in significant numbers. Much less refined that past large manufacturers, they pay homage to earlier birch bark builds, with features like gunwale caps reminiscent of bark canoes. While more crudely built, they have great hull shapes and are a pleasure to paddle. When one showed up needing canvas and a freshening up for a more than reasonable price, we jumped at it. Just under 14' long, and with a moderate width it will make a great solo or good boat for two smaller paddlers. 

Load er up!

Great shape

Solid tips, rails and gunwale caps. Stem bands not broken and no rot

Typical heart decks, and gunwale caps covering rails and deck joint

Going home, summer project

Original canvas is done

Keel off, canvas removed

Get that pigeon poop out. Indoor storage prevented any rot. Great solid boat

Arrowhead deck and rail joints, similar to Grand Lake Stream canoes, St Louis canoes and others

Snowshoe gut seats

Maple thwarts

Picard decal

Solid, in need of sanding and revarnishing.

Sealer coats before canvas put on

Canvas going on, then fill and paint coming up

Peterborough Minetta solo progress

Rails are on under old rails, bringing boat depth back to where it should be. Another benefit is all the rib tips are solid and sanded down to new wood. Boat needs no new ribs, and a minimum of planking. Set for solo work with 2 thwarts and two carry thwarts, a solo seat will be built for using a double blade paddle. If the owner decides they want to use a single blade, a traditional caned seat can be hung from the rails at any time.

 Stem joint

 Rather than cut it the rail tips and redo the notch on the top of the stem as is more traditional, we opted for another style where the gunwale tips are joined and fastened down into the stem top.

Wide cant ribs to be fastened

 Nice old stock Cherry, decks and thwarts from the same board

 Cutting deck sides using a bevel gauge to transfer the corresponding gunwale angle.

 Chestnut heart lobes, typically Chestnut but also common to many earlier Peterboroughs

 Decks left proud of rail top to allow for crown

 Nice fit

 Grey , weathered wood

 Weathered wood gone, revealing very nice Cherry colour

 Nice big pile of Cherry chips

 Lined up to ensure stems line up and boat stays true

 Thwart layout

 Carving crown in deck

 Crowned deck installed

 Similar seat to whats up next, to be made of white oak and cherry slats

 Epifanes version of turquoise

 New layout of 15'er

 Small amount of planking to be repaired

 Solo seat location will be best just aft of centre

 Decks installed

 Next is interior strip

 Next is build the seat, repair plaking and strip the interior, varnish and canvas

 Dressed up with a rug and an all wood paddle, will look classic as well as be more stable, safer and have room in front of the paddler for the occasional grand child

New (old) Woods pack, #1 Special

Kijiji gives up another vintage pack, a woods canvas #1 in great original shape. Oil the straps, and into the collection it goes. Last made some years ago, with quality way down and a retail price north of $200, these are a bargain and becoming increasingly sought after.

 Nice original tag

 

New Woods branded backpack. Nylon and made overseas, but they brought back the old embroidered logo rather than the new stylized one so it was an easy decision to buy one.

 

Woods #200 sitting in the cruiser replica, in the shadow of the original

 Enlarged rendition of original and much seen photograph of loaded canoe, with packs clearly visible.

 Shot of Thomson waiting outside the train station in Algonquin, pack clearly visible